


kiss me to pieces

by neohearts



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, College, Comfort, Established Relationship, Fluff and Angst, Happy Ending, Hugs, Hurt/Comfort, Light Angst, M/M, Moving, cuz it’s implied, if u squint, rated t for language lmao, schools suck, tests suck especially, the angst ISN’T with markren tho
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-26
Updated: 2020-08-26
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:20:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,597
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26124124
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/neohearts/pseuds/neohearts
Summary: the door swings partially open to reveal mark with dark hair so messy and tousled, it’s as though he kept running his hands through them for years without ever stopping once. his red eyes are welled up with so many held-back tears that one effortlessly spills down his pretty cheek when he locks gazes with renjun.
Relationships: Huang Ren Jun/Mark Lee
Comments: 2
Kudos: 81





	kiss me to pieces

**Author's Note:**

> with school starting up again, i was reminded of how i would usually do worse on my tests than i thought i would (flashback to when i cried in the school bathroom cuz i got a C one time) so i got inspiration to write this. anyways since markren is underrated, enjoy <33

the front door closes shut with a slam, easily resounding throughout the apartment complex and through renjun’s worn-out earbuds pumping music into his ears.

renjun perks up knowing mark is back from class. he pauses the song playing on his phone and pull his earbuds off, scrambling out of bed to greet his boyfriend home. he pulls his bedroom door open, shuffling to the living room where mark is more than likely sprawled onto the couch with a pinched look on his face, trying to comprehend all the work assigned for the night and impending exams coming up.

renjun nearly trips over a bin full of kitchen supplies when he enters the cramped living room, still dotted with labelled boxes, only to abruptly stop in his tracks cold.

mark isn’t anywhere in sight.

renjun frowns. then he hears the faint click of a door closing shut across the complex.

renjun’s frown deepens as confusion seeps in. why did mark go straight to his room without a single word?

an unwelcome feeling nestles into his stomach as he makes his way towards mark’s bedroom, stopping right in front of his door. it’s decorated with superhero stickers and a poster of a band (that renjun keeps reminding himself to check out one day for mark’s sake), but at this moment of unadulterated trepidation, the door seems to loom over renjun in eery anticipation. with a shaky hand, he reaches up to give three tentative knocks against the wood right under a spider-man sticker, the sound like thunder crackling in the uneasy silence polluting the atmosphere.

“mark?” renjun calls out softly, but with the firmness to render a wooden barrier useless.

there is no answer.

he steps back. the thought of _something’s wrong_ is pounding in his mind above everything else, but renjun _has_ to make sure mark is okay above everything else, too. he steps forward again. but before renjun can rap his knuckles against the door again, footsteps approach the other side of the hardwood and the silver doorknob twists.

the door swings partially open to reveal mark with dark hair so messy and tousled, it’s as though he kept running his hands through them for years without ever stopping once. his red eyes are welled up with so many held-back tears that one effortlessly spills down his pretty cheek when he locks gazes with renjun.

renjun’s heart _shatters_.

he aches to reach out to the space left open by the door with the pure intent to hold mark close and flush against him, but he holds himself back to simply wait for mark to speak first out of consideration, out of overwhelming _concern_.

mark shuts his eyes, tears endlessly streaming down his face as a heart-wrenching sob finally rips out of his throat. “no it’s dumb it’s so _fucking_ stupid i _swear_ it’s nothing i’m just overreacting i’m just—” words keep tumbling out of mark’s lips before he can properly form them and place them down coherently, but his attempts to communicate are interrupted as another broken sob forces its way out of him with a heave. that’s when renjun breaks.

renjun shoves the door open without anymore hesitation. he securely wraps his arms around mark’s torso in a warm embrace, silently urging him to _let it all out_ and to _let go_ if he has to.

mark vehemently shakes his head against renjun’s shoulder. “no _please_ i’m—” he cuts off to inhale an extremely shaky breath, so wobbly renjun believes he’ll teeter off edge at any wrong move. renjun just hugs him tight while reluctantly listening to his boyfriend’s sniffles and unsteady exhalations. he doesn’t know how much time has passed—it could’ve been minutes, or an hour—but then mark’s hands are trailing up renjun’s sides to grip at his dainty shoulders. “okay...i think i’m good for now...” his voice undoubtedly has a lilt of a tremor, so renjun refuses, tightening his hold and rubbing soothing circles on mark’s back. the grip on his shoulders curl with a little more force. “renjun, please? i want to see your face.”

renjun relents at last, hesitantly loosening his arms to let mark slightly pull away to face him with puffy eyes and tear-stained cheeks, the sight further rupturing the vestiges in his chest. he notices mark doesn’t release hands from his shoulders.

“thank you,” mark whispers, so quiet yet so full of tender gratitude that it will bleed in the crevices of renjun’s heart forever. “i’m sorry.”

“for what?”

“for making a big deal out of nothing.”

renjun stands on his tip-toes to press a kiss to his forehead, soft and lingering. “don’t say that. whatever you cry about isn’t nothing. talk to me.”

mark’s hesitation spikes the air, but he yields anyway with an assentive nod. renjun leads them further into the room and onto mark’s bed so they can get more comfortable, enthusiastically patting the space next to him for mark to sit down. mark carefully settles down on his own bed with dithering resolve. his movements are as unmotivated as a cat’s and his tired eyes constantly flicker into renjun’s before sheepishly fluttering away.

but renjun waits for the inevitable to come, because they hardly hide anything from each other if it hurts them like this. he stretches out a comforting hand to interlace fingers with mark, their held hands resting atop mark’s knee to provide unspoken support.

mark takes a deep breath as fresh tears spring to his eyes. “i failed an exam.”

the confession alleviates the heavy tension and lifts up the confining ambience. he pauses before continuing, voice raw from crying. “it was a big exam, too. i studied so hard for it and i was pretty confident so i assumed i would get a good mark, but the results came in in class today and now my grade is gonna plummet and—” mark shrugs meaninglessly, like he doesn’t care that much but renjun can see through his act as clearly as simply glancing through stainless glass —“i don’t know. it’s stupid. well _i’m_ the stupid one, probably. maybe i’m dumber than i thought. it’s nothing, like i said.”

“it’s not nothing,” renjun nearly interrupts him adamantly, his fingers tighten around mark’s. “of course you’re going to be upset, you spent so much time and effort preparing for that exam, right? but it’s also just one exam.” he lifts his other hand up to sweetly cup mark’s face, whose eyes grow round. “you shouldn’t reduce all your hard work on that, mark, or bring yourself down and say you’re stupid. you’re so fucking smart and bright, and you’ll get so many more chances, okay? you have all the time in the world to make up everything.”

when mark doesn’t answer, renjun just swipes his thumb to wipe away any stray tears drying on his damp cheek and murmurs, “i can’t help but want to alter your mindset sometimes. i hate seeing you so hard on yourself all the time.”

“sorry,” mark mumbles out as a warm tear unexpectedly falls from his wet eyelashes and lands on renjun’s thumb. “it’s sorta how i grew up, i guess.”

“it’s okay to be bad at things, you know. you don’t have to prove anything to anyone. it’s okay to mess up.”

“i know i know,” mark sighs, turning his head to briefly kiss renjun’s palm before nuzzling into it, eyes fluttering shut in delicate bliss. “i know,” he repeats, but it’s so hushed and gentle that renjun almost thinks he imagined it.

renjun is still worried, but he ultimately decides to continue another day once mark has the time to calm down and collect his thoughts. he retreats from mark’s face and hand. “let’s go eat, baby,” renjun gently prompts, already beginning to stand up from the bed. “let’s talk about this more some other time, okay?”

before renjun can fully straighten up, arms instantly encircle his waist and tug him back to the bed from behind. a yelp unintentionally escapes from his mouth when he’s pulled into mark’s lap. hot breath bathes the back of his neck before familiar, velvety lips make contact with the thin layer of skin. mark keeps pressing warm kisses to the back of renjun’s neck, tickling the skin and making renjun giggle uncontrollably. renjun tries to wriggle out but his clasp is too strong and too solid. then he feels a hand sweep down to slip under his t-shirt and flatten flush over the surface on his stomach, too warm and intimate considering what happened in the past few minutes.

“woah!” renjun shoots a hand down to grasp mark’s wrist lightning-fast, preventing him from trailing his lithe fingers further up his body. nervous laughter unwillingly bubbles from his mouth and he can feel himself flustering, but perseveres anyway. “mark. you were, like, bawling your eyes out like two minutes ago.”

a breathy chuckle floods renjun’s neck with hot air. the hand withdraws from under his shirt to begin playing with the hem of it instead. plush lips drag across his skin to press onto the elegant curve connecting renjun’s neck and shoulder. “i love you so much,” mark murmurs. his voice, earlier hoarse and wracked with sobs, is now filled to the brim with love and warmth. he pecks the pale skin peeking above the collar of renjun’s shirt.

“i would say it back, but you tried to strip me so no.”

mark’s playful ministrations start again right away. both of his hands hike renjun’s shirt up, flagrantly exposing and tracing skin, and he _bites_.

renjun screams.

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading, and let’s not be too hard on ourselves this school year :) <3  
> 


End file.
